ECB has asked banks to fully cover impaired loans by around 2026-paper

MILAN (Reuters) - The European Central Bank has asked lenders under its oversight to put aside more money to fully cover their impaired loans by around 2026, a source-based report in Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore said on Tuesday.

The report focused in particular on Italian banks, saying the country's lenders were burdened by the highest amount of impaired loans in Europe.

The banks could not comply with the regulator's request if they were able to explain why, the paper also said.

(Reporting by Francesca Landini; Editing by Kim Coghill)